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Two decades ago today, the European particle accelerator called CERN gave birth to what's known as the open Web -- a technology that anyone can build without paying licensing or royalty fees.

But as the Web has grown ever more popular and sophisticated, proprietary technology poses a challenge to that philosophy of openness. The challenge is most clear in the area of video, where patents and copy protection are at odds with the Web's openness.

Tim Berners-Lee, a physicist at CERN, started developing what he called the World Wide Web in 1989. After CERN released the software for … Read more

Research has shown that frequent use of a computer mouse may contribute to repetitive motion injuries. KeyCue for Mac claims to teach users how to replace the mouse with keyboard shortcuts, but its limited functionality and its price make it less useful than it could have been.

A 30-day free trial version of KeyCue for Mac is available, but it costs $29.99 for the full version. The program downloads quickly but despite having its own installer, proved difficult to set up. We had to try the installation several times due to the program claiming it could not install while … Read more

He stopped well short of saying information wants to be free, but Tim Berners-Lee, the founder of the World Wide Web, said today the world would be better with some judicious liberation.

Speaking at the 2013 World Economic Forum today in Davos, Switzerland, Berners-Lee called on social-networking sites, academics, musicians, and governments to share more information online.

In earlier days of computing, people had full control over their own information because it was all stored on their own computer in front of them. Now, people store data with online services that deprive them of that control.

"They put their … Read more

The Do Not Track proposal seems to be causing confusion and frustration among some W3C members charged with approving it.

Once ratified, the DNT policy would require advertisers and other third parties to turn off tracking for Internet users whose browser settings specifically restrict it.

The push for DNT has already created a chasm between advertisers, who naturally want the policy to be as lean as possible, and privacy advocates, who want tough standards.

Browser makers have also been caught in the furor. Firefox, Chrome, Opera, Safari, and Internet Explorer already include DNT settings. But Microsoft has caused waves by … Read more

Now that you have your iPhone 5, you've probably noticed that not all apps take advantage of the wider screen. I've been noticing that the updates have been pouring in fairly quickly, but unfortunately, I still have a lot of pillarboxed apps and games that show black spaces on each side.

For this week's collection I put together three games that look absolutely fantastic on the iPhone 5's larger display. The first is the latest in a popular arcade-style racing franchise and gives you more viewing area as you blaze around the track. The second is an action RPG that pits you against demonic beasts as you hack and slash your way to saving a kidnapped queen. The last is the newest version of a popular soccer series that might be the best sports game available on iOS.… Read more

The Web is a heinous construct.

It's patrolled by Western spies who crawl all over its pages, blocking information and quietly having people they don't like arrested. Yes, like Kim DotCom.

Iran has found a solution to this vexing problem, one that will allow Iranian citizens to freely communicate with each other about Iran's fine government and everything it is doing to assist its happy, hard-working citizens.

Yes, Iran is building its own Web, which some oddly describe as a "censored" Web.

I am utterly honored that the astutely named Fars News has quoted Iran'… Read more

There's a more secure way to capture your skateboarding and mountain biking exploits than by duct taping your iPhone to the top of your helmet.

Optrix, a company that once ran over one of its own cases with a very large Dodge truck, has now taken on the task of protecting your iPhone during extreme sports activities.… Read more

I never knew that Tim Berners-Lee was a cross-dresser.

I don't mean to bring it up to expose him. I bring it up merely to celebrate the fact.

For in 8 days' time, the first photo ever uploaded to the Web will be 20 years old. And why would a picture of a wonderful all-girl singing group be the first ever out there on the WWW?

Well, partly, a report suggests, because of Berners-Lee's cross-dressing.

I lean heavily for this information on the wonderful tale told by Motherboard. (I've also emailed Berners-Lee, but haven't heard back.)… Read more

Google's Executive Chairman Eric Schmidt spoke about the haves and the have-nots during a speech today at an annual Israeli conference sponsored by President Shimon Peres, according to the Associated Press.

His message focused on the fact that most people on earth aren't benefiting from technology's enormous advances over the past few years. According to the Associated Press, Schmidt referenced to data that shows less than one third of the world's population (2 billion people) has Internet access.

"The World Wide Web has yet to live up to its name," he said. "Technology … Read more